1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to managing directories for a database system having an in-memory database, and more particularly to systems and methods for the automatic and transparent management of a directory in a database system to leverage the use of an in-memory database.
2. Discussion of Related Art
A catalog or directory is a mechanism that aids clients in locating entries and attributes about those entries. Entries might include network resources such as printers or web pages, information about people (e.g., a customer database or telephone directory), users (e.g., encryption certificates, passwords, and login information), or reference resources (e.g., books). For example, a client application in a computer system may access a catalog or directory containing entries regarding information stored in one or more databases on a database server or in a Database Management System (DBMS).
In the past, many applications utilized proprietary or customized interfaces to connect with the database servers and/or the DBMS, but then the lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP) was developed in order to provide a consistent and controlled system for accessing data. LDAP is an open industry standard directory services protocol that is capable of performing powerful directory service queries as well as allowing clients to issue commands that add, delete or modify directory service entries. Examples of commercial LDAP server software that can catalog many remote databases include IBM SecureWay Directory, IBM Tivoli Directory Server, Netscape LDAP Server and Microsoft Active Directory.
The LDAP directory service is based on a client-server model. Specifically, an LDAP server (or servers) contains the data comprising the LDAP directory tree, and an LDAP client can connect to the LDAP server and transmit a request for data. The server either can respond with the data, or if the data is not available locally, the server can attempt to connect to another server, typically another LDAP server, that can fulfill the request. Because the purpose of the catalog or directory is to locate entries, much of the LDAP traffic against the LDAP server comprises read operations. Because traffic can be heavy, particularly in a large or frequently-accessed database, LDAP systems utilize index files to speed search performance. Despite the use of index files, however, systems are still slowed down by the need to conduct numerous read operations from the disks on which the data is stored.